Schools Facing Loss Of $350,000

Palm Beach County Schools could lose about $350,000 meant to help fight drugs and violence if Congress and President Clinton don't resolve their budget differences soon.

"That's one that's looking kind of grim right now," Ron Armstrong, coordinator of pupil personnel services for the district, said on Friday.

Broward schools could lose up to $540,466, school officials said.

Nationwide, schools might have to do without $100 million in federal money for the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Program, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley said on Friday.

That's because the temporary spending plan approved by Congress to prevent another federal government shutdown includes only 75 percent of the original money for many programs.

The spending plan may be extended through the end of the year, because congressional Republicans say they have little hope of resolving their differences with the White House before the November election.

The uncertainty about the size of federal allotments is becoming a concern as schools make budgets for the next school year. In Florida, which receives the fifth-highest allocation in the nation, officials are trying to prepare for at least a $4.6 million loss.